Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
[Pumpkin]
- 1 pumpkin (produces 3-6 cups cooked pumpkin)
[Spices]
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground cloves
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg (or allspice)
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger (or mace)
- 1/2 tsp salt (optional)
[Filling]
- 3 cups cooked pumpkin
- 1 cup brown sugar (or white sugar)
- 4 eggs
- 300 ml cream (or 400ml milk)
- spices
[Crust]
I prefer frozen sweet short pastry crusts. If you want to make one from scratch, I recommend searching for Julia Child’s Pate Brisee.
Directions
[Pumpkin]
- Cut in half (or buy pre-cut). Scoop out any seeds along with the stringy material that surrounds them.
- Steam for 30 minutes or bake cut-side down in oven at 180C for 45-60 minutes. Pumpkin is done when soft enough that you can stick a fork in it.
- Scoop out the cooked pumpkin and discard the rind.
- Puree in a blender or food processor (or using a hand mixer). Depending on the pumpkin variety this make smell very strong or be very watery; this will not affect the final taste.
[Spices]
- The amounts given are per 3 cups of cooked pumpkin.
- You may wish to substitute or add 1/2tsp allspice, mace, or salt.
[Crust]
- Preheat oven to 210C.
- Prepare as directed. I generally use a sheet of pastry for a 9-inch pie pan. Unless you have a non-stick variety, you should butter the bottom and sides of the pan.
[Filling]
- Preheat oven to 210C.
- Combine all ingredients using a blender, food processor, or hand mixer. Note that the mixture may be very runny, like soup.
- Pour into your prepared crust until about 1cm from top of pan (if you fill it higher, it may overflow when it expands).
- You may have enough for a second pie. If not, the excess filling can be added to a muffin or bread recipe.
- Bake at 210C for 15 minutes, then turn oven down to 180C and bake an additional 45-60 minutes. Pie is done when a knife or cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
Notes
To make mini versions, I use mini muffin pans. Butter them well, you don’t want the pie to get stuck! I cut my crusts out with a cookie cutter and use about a tablespoon of filling each. Bake at 180C for 20-30 minutes.